On March 7, 2025, Maulana Syed Kalbe Jawad Naqvi led a massive protest outside Lucknow’s Asifi Mosque, demanding the withdrawal of the proposed Waqf Amendment Bill.
A video is being widely shared on social media in which police officers are assaulting protestors. The video is shared with a caption claiming that the video is of protest against the Waqf Bill in Uttar Pradesh.
A social media user shared the video with a caption, “People of a particular community gathered against the Waqf Bill in Uttar Pradesh! Immediate treatment was provided! Famous healer: Yogi Adityanath Ji Maharaj!” (Translated from Hindi)
SouthCheck found that the claim is false. The viral video is old and shows police action at a protest against CAA-NRC.
On a reverse image search, we found that the same video was uploaded by a X user on December 31, 2019. The video was shared with a caption that reads, “This video is from Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh. UP police using brutal force against unarmed Anti-CAA Protesters.”
We also found another Facebook user had also shared the same video on January 25, 2020, with a caption suggesting that the video was of people protesting against anti-CAA protest.
On a Google keyword search, it led us to a news report published by Live Hindustan on December 20, 2019. The report was shared with a title that reads, “Gorakhpur: Two injured in stone pelting, lathi charge during a protest against CAA.” The report stated that the police were beating protesters who threw stones at them during the anti-CAA protests at Nakhass Chowk in Gorakhpur on December 20, 2019.
On comparing the viral video with the video shared by Live Hindustan, we could see the similarities in the location, such as the same red banner being present in both videos.
We also geolocated the place seen in the video and found that the video shows Nakhass Chowk, Kotwali Road, Miyan Baza, Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.
Therefore, we conclude that the viral video is old and is unrelated to the Waqf Amendment Bill.
